the joeyhandbag logo...

So my brother, Rob Muth, is an artist. And I asked him to draw a cartoon of my dog Joey to use on my logo. And of course he came through with flying colors. I'm so lucky to have such a talented brother who loves me and puts up with all of my silly requests!!



I plan to use this on my fabric labels in black and white. I'm also having him draft up a pic from the front to hopefully use on the jewelry that my mom attaches to the purses. If you look closely at the cartoon, you'll see that my brother add little embroidery stitches, so adorable. Below is an actual picture of my little baby joey, so that you can see the resemblance!

The Newest Bag

So, the other day I was talking to my friend Sloan ( future business partner in our dream to open a boutique called "PRINCIPESSA")...and we decided that we would need a third style of bag in order to try and sell to local boutiques.

There's already the Katie Hobo...(based on my larger homeless dog, who literally was a hobo haha) This is my largest bag--and largest dog.

Then there was a small clutch that I created, using a bangle bracelet instead of a loop of fabric. And this bag is based on my little family dog Bandit. He's a 6 pound, black, spunky, toothless, blind, and most recently found to have a enlarged heart ball of fun and love.

So Sloan and I were on a mission to find some sort of pattern to create a middle sized bag...And I believe we found the perfect one. It's a bit longer than the hobo, and much bigger than the clutch. I added my signature bangles to the pattern by adding longer straps that connect to the bottom of the bag, and added an attachment closure to the top of the bag.

The funny thing about this bag is we needed a "JOEY" bag, my third dog. Being third, does not mean that he is not my favorite, it's actually quite the opposite. Joey is my beloved dachschund. HE is my most favorite little guy in the whole world (my husband is my big guy and yes, I love him too!) Very fittingly, this bag is long, but short height-wise...kind of like my little weiner dog.

So there we have it...#1 the Katie hobo....#2 the Bandito clutch...#3 your average Joey bag...(there's also a miniature joey, but I'll save that for next time)...

the beginning...

It all started when I needed to fix a dress for a wedding that I was going to. It was a tube-top dress, and I wanted to add straps so that it would stay up (I don't have the required equipment to keep a dress like that from falling off--if you know what I mean). So I decided I would go buy ribbon and a sewing machine. I hadn't used a sewing machine since I was about 12, so this was going to be a challenge...To add to my dilemma, I only had about three hours before the wedding to go get the supplies, reteach myself how to sew, fix my dress, shower, get ready, and drive 45 minutes to the wedding. Well after 1 hour of trying to remember how to thread the machine, I finally GOT IT! And the dress worked out great and I received a ton of compliments! Best part was that it stayed up with no problems as I danced the night away!

The next day I had full intentions on returning the sewing machine for a full refund of $150. But since the night before, I couldn't stop thinking about all of the things I wanted to sew. So needless to say, instead of returning the sewing machine I bought a bag pattern and fabric and went to town. I haven't looked back since!